THE WAR OF 1965 ( The battle of steel and fire )

- This conflict is known as the 1965 war or Second Kashmir War and it took
place after the Pakistan army’s Operation Gibraltar in India Occupied
Kashmir. The 1965 war caused casualties on both sides.
-The Indo-Pakistani War of 1965 was a culmination of skirmishes that took
place between April 1965 and September 1965 between Pakistan and India.
The conflict began following Pakistan's Operation Gibraltar, which was
designed to infiltrate forces into Jammu and Kashmir to precipitate an
insurgency against Indian rule. India retaliated by launching a full-scale
military attack on West Pakistan. The seventeen-day war caused thousands
of casualties on both sides and witnessed the largest engagement of armored
vehicles and the largest tank battle since World War II. Hostilities between
the two countries ended after a United Nations-mandated ceasefire was
declared following diplomatic intervention by the Soviet Union and the
United States, and the subsequent issuance of the Tashkent Declaration.[24]
Much of the war was fought by the countries' land forces in Kashmir and
along the border between India and Pakistan. This war saw the largest
amassing of troops in Kashmir since the Partition of British India in 1947, a
number that was overshadowed only during the 2001–2002 military standoff
between India and Pakistan. Most of the battles were fought by opposing
infantry and armoured units, with substantial backing from air forces, and
naval operations. Many details of this war, like those of other Indo-Pakistani
Wars, remain unclear.
-On September 8, India launched its main attack against Sialkot using its
armoured division and other strike formations. Analysts consider this to be
the largest tank battle since World War II. It was a hard and bitter struggle
fought over many days and nights, resulting in many casualties on both
sides. In the end India’s armoured division was forced to withdraw, owing to
very high losses in men and materiel.
- The Pakistan Air Force (PAF) also played a significant role in this war,
which was the first time that the air forces of both states were facing each
other. PAF pilots displayed remarkable skills despite its smaller size and its
best example was that of Squadron Leader M.M. Alam, who shot down five
Indian fighter planes.
- On 7th September in 1965 Pakistan Navy, under the guidance of
Commodore S. M. Anwar, attacked the Indian naval radar station that was
set up on the coast of Dwarka in India, which is approximately 320km to the
south-east of Karachi Port. The operation was successful and it boosted the
morale of our soldiers and the nation as a whole.
- During this war, 1617 sq. miles of territory was occupied by Pakistan as
compared to 446 sq. miles of Pakistan’s open and undefended territory
occupied by India. In this war the Pakistan Army captured 20 Indian
officers, 19 junior Indian Commissioned Officers and 569 other ranks.
- On January 10, 1966, a declaration of formal cessation of hostilities was
signed by the presidents of both Pakistan and India. From Pakistan’s side
General Ayub Khan and from India’s side Lal Bahadur Shastri were there on
this occasion.
THE WAR On 5 August 1965 between 26,000 and 33,000 Pakistani
soldiers crossed the Line of Control dressed as Kashmiri locals headed for
various areas within Kashmir. Indian forces, tipped off by the local
populace, crossed the cease fire line on 15 August.
Initially, the Indian Army met with considerable success, capturing three
important mountain positions after a prolonged artillery barrage. By the end
of August, however, both sides had relative progress; Pakistan had made
progress in areas such as Tithwal, Uri and Poonch and India had captured the
Haji Pir pass, 8 km into Pakistan-Administered Kashmir.
On 1 September 1965, Pakistan launched a counterattack, called Operation
Grand Slam, with the objective to capture the vital town of Akhnoor in
Jammu, which would sever communications and cut off supply routes to
Indian troops. Ayub Khan calculated that "Hindu morale would not stand
more than a couple of hard blows at the right time and place" although by
this time Operation Gibraltar had failed and India had captured the Haji Pir
Pass. At 3:30 hours, on 1 September 1965, the entire Chhamb area came
under massive artillery bombardment. Pakistan had launched operation
Grand Slam and India's Army Headquarter was taken by surprise. Attacking
with an overwhelming ratio of troops and technically superior tanks,
Pakistan made gains against Indian forces, who were caught unprepared and
suffered heavy losses. India responded by calling in its air force to blunt the
Pakistani attack. The next day, Pakistan retaliated, its air force attacked
Indian forces and air bases in both Kashmir and Punjab. India's decision to
open up the theatre of attack into Pakistani Punjab forced the Pakistani army
to relocate troops engaged in the operation to defend Punjab. Operation
Grand Slam therefore failed, as the Pakistan Army was unable to capture
Akhnoor; it became one of the turning points in the war when India decided
to relieve pressure on its troops in Kashmir by attacking Pakistan further
south. In the valley, another area of strategic importance was Kargil. Kargil
town was in Indian hands but Pakistan occupied high ground overlooking
Kargil and Srinagar-Leh road. However, after the launch of a massive anti-
infiltration operation by the Indian army, the Pakistani infiltrators were
forced out of that area in the month of August. India crossed the
International Border on the Western front on 6 September On 6 September,
the 15th Infantry Division of the Indian Army, under World War II veteran
Major General Prasad, battled a massive counterattack by Pakistan near the
west bank of the Icchogil Canal (BRB Canal), which was a de facto border
of India and Pakistan. The General's entourage itself was ambushed and he
was forced to flee his vehicle. A second, this time successful, attempt to
cross the Ichhogil Canal was made over the bridge in the village of Barki,
just east of Lahore. These developments brought the Indian Army within the
range of Lahore International Airport. As a result, the United States
requested a temporary ceasefire to allow it to evacuate its citizens in Lahore.
However, the Pakistani counterattack took Khem Karan from Indian forces
which tried to divert the attention of Pakistanis from Khem Karan by an
attack on Bedian and the adjacent villages.
-Tank battles The 1965 war witnessed some of the largest tank battles
since World War II. At the beginning of the war, the Pakistani Army had
both a numerical advantage in tanks, as well as better equipment overall.
Pakistani armour was largely American-made; it consisted mainly of Patton
M-47 and M-48 tanks, but also included many M4 Sherman tanks, some
M24 Chaffee light tanks and M36 Jackson tank destroyers, equipped with 90
mm guns.[93] The bulk of India's tank fleet were older M4 Sherman tanks;
some were up-gunned with the French high velocity CN 75 50 guns and
could hold their own, whilst some older models were still equipped with the
inferior 75 mm M3 L/40 gun. Besides the M4 tanks, India fielded the
British-made Centurion Tank Mk 7, with the 105 mm Royal Ordnance L7
gun, and the AMX-13, PT-76, and M3 Stuart light tanks. Pakistan fielded a
greater number and more modern artillery; its guns out-ranged those of the
Indian artillery, according to Pakistan's Major General T.H. Malik.
At the outbreak of war in 1965, Pakistan had about 15 armoured cavalry
regiments, each with about 45 tanks in three squadrons. Besides the Pattons,
there were about 200 M4 Shermans re-armed with 76 mm guns, 150 M24
Chaffee light tank and a few independent squadrons of M36B1 tank
destroyers. Most of these regiments served in Pakistan's two armoured
divisions, the 1st and 6th Armoured divisions – the latter being in the
process of formation The Indian Army of the time possessed 17 cavalry
regiments, and in the 1950s had begun modernizing them by the acquisition
of 164 AMX-13 light tanks and 188 Centurions. The remainder of the
cavalry units were equipped with M4 Shermans and a small number of
M3A3 Stuart light tanks. India had only a single armoured division, the 1st
'Black Elephant' Armoured Division, which consisted of the 17th Horse (The
Poona Horse), also called 'Fakhr-i-Hind' ('Pride of India'), the 4th Horse
(Hodson's Horse), the 16th Cavalry, the 7th Light Cavalry, the 2nd Lancers,
the 18th Cavalry and the 62nd Cavalry, the two first named being equipped
with Centurions. There was also the 2nd Independent Armoured Brigade,
one of whose three regiments, the 3rd Cavalry, was also equipped with
Centurions.
Despite the qualitative and numerical superiority of Pakistani armour
Pakistan was outfought on the battlefield by India, which made progress into
the Lahore-Sialkot sector, whilst halting Pakistan's counteroffensive on
Amritsar; they were sometimes employed in a faulty manner, such as
charging prepared defences during the defeat of Pakistan's 1st Armoured
Division at Asal Uttar.
After India breached the Madhupur canal on 11 September, the Khem Karan
counter-offensive was halted, affecting Pakistan's strategy substantially.
Although India's tank formations experienced some results, India's attack at
the Battle of Chawinda, led by its 1st Armoured Division and supporting
units, was brought to halt by the newly raised 6th Armoured Division (ex-
100th independent brigade group) in the Chawinda sector. Pakistan claimed
that Indians lost 120 tanks at Chawinda. compared to 44 of its own But later,
Indian official sources confirmed India lost only 29 tanks at Chawinda.
Neither the Indian nor Pakistani Army showed any great facility in the use of
armoured formations in offensive operations, whether the Pakistani 1st
Armoured Division at Asal Uttar or the Indian 1st Armoured Division at
Chawinda. In contrast, both proved adept with smaller forces in a defensive
role such as India's 2nd Armoured Brigade at Asal Uttar and Pakistan's 25th
Cavalry at Chawinda.
The Centurion battle tank, with its 105 mm gun and heavy armour,
performed better than the overly complex Pattons.